Page 113 of Hush, Little Baby

The doctor doesn’t look relieved; if anything, the corners of his mouth pinch tighter. “There were no signs of trauma that I could see, but if you don’t remember, I’d still really like to do an STD panel. I want to make sure you’re safe, and that you know you can tell me if anything comes up. Or, if you’d prefer, I can refer you to someone else.”

“I know. I’m not sure why I said it like that. They were um… they were close to doing that, but it didn’t happen.”

Nikolaus’s thumb brushes over my wrist, back and forth. He says nothing, but the silence is a net holding me aloft.

“Um… but could anything be transferred through spit?” I ask, my teeth clenched.

“It would be extraordinarily rare, but technically possible. I would recommend the tests just in case.”

I nod shakily and squeeze Niko’s hand.

“Is there anything else I should know about? Anything else ingested or anything that I can’t see?”

“Oh, yeah…” I take a breath. They um… they forced me to drink alcohol.”

Both men go still; the doctor’s eyes narrow.

“How much?” he asks, voice taut.

“I’m not sure. It was a half-full bottle of vodka, but a lot of it ended up on me. It was enough that I was choking on it, and could feel it like in my nose, if that makes sense? I also threw up a few times, so I’m just not sure how much is in my system.”

He nods, lips pursed. “That’s… a large volume for your size. You’re lucky not to have aspirated it.” His fingers linger on the pulse in my wrist, counting silently.

My mouth feels thick and clumsy. I can barely swallow, but I force myself. “Is it bad? Like, alcohol poisoning?”

“You’re showing mild withdrawal symptoms. Seems like you’ve metabolized most of it by now, which is frankly remarkable.” The doctor’s eyes flick up from my wrist to my face. “But if you start feeling confused, if you see or hear things that aren’t there—or if your pulse races or you get the shakes—tell someone immediately. You may still have a rough night or two,” he says, “but you’ll pull through.”

“Okay,” I answer.

“With that said, given your medications and history, I can’t afford any risks. I need to start an IV now.”

I exhale. “Will it help?”

“It will.”

I nod. “Okay then.”

“I’ll be right back.” Then he turns to Nikolaus, whose face has gone pale. “And you need to relax.”

Nikolaus frowns. “What?”

The doctor lifts one eyebrow. “You won’t make a very helpful partner if you have a heart attack.”

He then departs before Nikolaus can argue. The door clicks shut, and the room settles into silence.

For a long moment, neither of us moves. Nikolaus remains seated beside me, hand still clasping mine, eyes fearful I might vanish again.

After a few minutes of quietly soaking up his presence and my safety, I whisper, “You found me.”

Pain flickers across his features. “Of course I did,” he says softly, as though there could be no other choice. “Turns out Russians aren’t great with secrets when there’s a gun to their head.”

Tears well in my eyes again. “I thought—” My voice breaks. “I thought I wasn’t going home, Daddy.”

His grip tightens until my fingers whiten. “You were always coming home, baby. I’m so sorry that I didn’t realize what was happening with Constantine. I would’ve never let him near you if I had even an inkling—”

I shush him. “I know. But it’s okay, because you saved me.”

“It’s not okay, baby. Look at you. Look at how much pain you’re in. Look at… what could have happened.”